APTEM LTD

Aptem Skills - Adult Skills Fund (ASF), Skills Bootcamps & Commercial Training

Aptem Skills is a configurable, end-to-end digital platform for delivering, managing, and tracking skills/training programmes. From employer/candidate pre-enrolment features and recruitment, through to administration, learning, funding and reporting, Training providers use Aptem Skills for Skills Bootcamps, Adult Skills Fund (ASF), commercial training, short courses, Study programmes, CPD and more.

Features

• A configurable end-to-end solution, accessed via a mobile-friendly console.
• Remote eligibility checking and enrolment, including Initial Assessment and RPL.
• Compliance tools including ILR management and batch file generation.
• Full ePortfolio/eLearning capabilities, including SCORM content, delivered via VLE/LMS.
• Management and delivery of remote meetings, reviews, workshops and webinars.
• Delivery of multiple aims, including work placements.
• Configurable reviews, helping to monitor learner progression.
• Learner portal with sophisticated CV builder and jobseeker eLearning material.
• Auto-matching of job vacancies, from aggregated job vacancies.
• Real-time reporting via embedded Power BI dashboards.

Benefits

• Enhance and evidence Ofsted, DfE and GDPR compliance.
• Increase engagement through a mobile-friendly, single-system interface.
• Reduce manual paperwork and administrative overheads through automation.
• Produce compliance documents such as ILR submissions in seconds.
• Enable reliable and timely quality assurance.
• Gain transparency and actionable business insights through real-time reporting.
• Configure your learner journey to best suit different delivery models.
• Enhance job search support with CV tools and vacancy alerts.
• Enable 24/7 access to learning and employability resources.
• Provide engaging eLearning via Learning Management System.

Service documents

• Pricing document

  PDF

• Service definition document

  PDF

• Terms and conditions

  PDF

Request an accessible format

If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at enquiries@aptem.co.uk. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.

Framework

G-Cloud 15

Service ID

114737924657765

Contact

David Devine
020 7870 1000
enquiries@aptem.co.uk

About your service

• Service categories:

  Applications

  Production and operations

  Service industry and public sector operations

  • Education
• Multi cloud support: No

Service scope

• Software add-on or extension: Yes, but can also be used as a standalone service
• What software services is the service an extension to: Aptem is the market-leading end-to-end platform for the management and delivery of ASF, Skills Bootcamps, Study programmes, and commercial training. It can be part of a wider system architecture via integrations such as registration systems, CRMs and other VLEs if required, or can work entirely stand-alone.
• Cloud deployment model: Public cloud
• Service constraints: None
• System requirements: None

User support

• Email or online ticketing support: Yes
• Support response times: Our team of dedicated Customer Support consultants are available Our team of dedicated Customer Support consultants are available 9am – 5:30pm UK time, Monday to Friday, to assist you (excluding UK Bank Holidays and the days between Christmas and New Year). We will respond within four business hours. You can access 24/7 support via our Help Centre where you can access articles, product guides, monthly release communications, recordings of training sessions, and the online chat bot.
• User can manage status and priority of support tickets: Yes
• Online ticketing support accessibility: EN 301 549
• Phone support: Yes
• Phone support availability: 9 to 5 (UK time), Monday to Friday
• Web chat support: Yes
• Web chat support availability: 24 hours, 7 days a week
• Web chat support accessibility standard: WCAG 2.2 AA
• Web chat accessibility testing: Our webchat provider is Intercom:; ; Manual accessibility testing with assistive technologies such as screen readers (e.g. VoiceOver, NVDA) and keyboard-only navigation. ; ; Automated accessibility checks to identify common issues related to semantics, contrast, and ARIA usage. ; ; Ongoing internal reviews as part of design and engineering workflows to ensure accessibility considerations are included as features evolve. ; ; Accessibility improvements are informed by testing outcomes and industry best practices, and accessibility is treated as an ongoing commitment rather than a one-time effort.
• Onsite support: Yes, at extra cost
• Support levels: Aptem operates a ‘train the trainer’ model whereby nominated persons at the customer assume the role of Aptem Superuser (first line support): answering system queries, troubleshooting incidents and delivering system training as applicable. ; ; The Aptem support team handles second line support queries. These are queries or issues that the customer’s Superuser(s) are unable to resolve. In addition, we operate and maintain our Aptem Help Centre, including a chat bot, as a one-stop-shop containing information, resources and guides for learners, employers, tutors and admins, available 24/7. ; ; Our minimum Service Levels are set within our Master Services Agreement. Authorised Aptem users can raise support tickets by completing an online support form on the Aptem Help Centre, or they can email support@aptem.co.uk, or phone the Aptem Support Team. All support tickets raised with the Aptem Support Team are logged on a case management system and processed by Aptem Support. Where a support query reports unexpected behaviour in the operation of the Aptem platform, in order to undertake further investigation, the Aptem Support Team aims to replicate reported problems and will ask for further information from the Superuser where required.
• Support available to third parties: No
• AI chatbot: Yes

Onboarding and offboarding

• Getting started: What you can expect from an Aptem implementation: ; ; Your dedicated Implementation Consultant will be with you every step of the way, advising and configuring the system to your business objectives. ; ; We ask questions – your critical friend. Where needed, we can help you to adjust your business processes to get better outcomes. ; ; Our Implementation Consultants have unrivalled sector and product knowledge. They are highly skilled in building deep relationships that get beneath the surface of your business. ; ; We provide online training and extensive user documentation (written articles and user training videos). ; ; By the end of implementation you will have a high level of in-house capability, with competent superusers who know how to configure and use the system, and how to customise it to meet your future business needs.
• Service documentation: Yes
• Documentation formats:
  • HTML
  • PDF
  • Other
• Other documentation formats: Video
• End-of-contract data extraction: Aptem has comprehensive export capability and Aptem can additionally create export data sets for customers.
• End-of-contract process: Aptem works with the customer to ensure a smooth transition from Aptem to their new supplier by ensuring they have access to all of their data either via their own access or provided to them by the Aptem team.
• Documentation accessibility standard: WCAG 2.2 AA

Using the service

• Web browser interface: Yes
• Supported browsers:
  • Microsoft Edge
  • Firefox
  • Chrome
  • Safari
  • Opera
  • Other
• Application to install: No
• Designed for use on mobile devices: Yes
• Differences between the mobile and desktop service: Aptem is a fully responsive Progressive Web App. All functionality is available across devices.
• Service interface: Yes
• User support accessibility: WCAG 2.2 AA
• Description of service interface: Aptem is delivered as a secure, browser-based SaaS application accessed over HTTPS. Users interact with the service through a responsive web interface with role-based dashboards and navigation tailored for learners, tutors, employers and administrators. The interface supports core workflows such as programme management, reviews, actions, evidence capture and reporting. No customer software is required, and the service can be accessed on modern desktop and mobile browsers. The interface supports accessibility features and integrates with other systems via secure, configurable integration points where required.
• Accessibility standards: WCAG 2.2 AA
• Accessibility testing: Information available upon request.
• API: Yes
• What users can and can't do using the API: There are several APIs for different areas of Aptem functionality. We request all users to discuss with us how they wish to use the Aptem APIs and we will provide implementation assistance. Our standard APIs are described at: https://aptem.co.uk/api.html
• API documentation: Yes
• API documentation formats:
  • Open API (also known as Swagger)
  • HTML
• API sandbox or test environment: Yes
• Customisation available: Yes
• Description of customisation: Popular customisable features available to Aptem customers: ; ; Onboarding. Aptem simplifies the process of delivering tailored onboarding experiences to learners. ; ; Learner journey. This can be personalised by programme or funding stream, and can also be specific to an employer. ; ; Curriculum content can be customised right down to individual learner level, and Aptem users can adapt what the journey physically looks like. ; ; Reviews in Aptem are a flexible and powerful feature that can be used to drive progress and manage business processes. ; ; Sub-programmes give Aptem users a huge amount of flexibility as they can create learning plans for all learners, subsets of learners, and even individual learners. This is personalisation, at scale.

Scaling

• Independence of resources: Aptem utilises the Microsoft Azure cloud hosting ecosystem to provide a flexible, scalable platform for our customers. For extra security and peace of mind each customer has their own separate database utilising scalable Azure cloud technology, capable of scaling to deal with increased demand as required. The Aptem platform utilises other aspects of the Azure cloud hosting ecosystem including automatically scaled microservices and functions that dynamically increase capacity to deal with increased load. This ecosystem allows Aptem to provide a highly available, scalable, performant platform to our customers ensuring that they receive consistently high levels of service and platform availability.

Analytics

• Service usage metrics: Yes
• Metrics types: Aptem offers a range of built-in reporting tools and Power BI Dashboards focused on compliance, quality & financials. Behind these sits an in-house Data Analytics Team that works with our customers to develop tailored data strategies and reporting that meets the needs of individual organisations. ; ; Through extensive OData field availability, users can create a range of reports tailored to their organisation’s specific needs. Customers can save historical reports for future reference.
• Reporting types:
  • API access
  • Real-time dashboards
  • Regular reports
  • Reports on request
• Resource tagging: No
• FOCUS resource tagging: No

Resellers

• Supplier type: Not a reseller

Staff security

• Staff security clearance: Conforms to BS7858:2019
• Government security clearance: Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS)

Asset protection

• Knowledge of data storage and processing locations: Yes
• Data storage and processing locations: United Kingdom
• User control over data storage and processing locations: No
• Datacentre security standards: Complies with a recognised standard (for example CSA CCM version 4.0)
• Penetration testing frequency: At least once a year
• Penetration testing approach: ‘IT Health Check’ performed by a CHECK service provider
• Protecting data at rest: Physical access control, complying with CSA CCM v4.0
• Data sanitisation process: Yes
• Equipment disposal approach: Complying with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v4.0, CAS (Sanitisation) or ISO/IEC 27001
• Data sanitisation type: Deleted data can’t be directly accessed / Cryptographic Erasure

Data importing and exporting

• Data export approach: Aptem can automatically generate the ILR batch file that a training provider is required to submit to the DfE on a monthly basis to claim funding for the delivery of training. This file contains individual learning records in an XML (Extensible Markup Language) format that can be submitted to the DfE using IDAMS (Information Management Services System). ; ; Exporting the file from Aptem will download an XML formatted file to your computer. You can view this as a text file or by XML reader software.
• Data export formats:
  • CSV
  • Other
• Other data export formats:
  • XLSX
  • PDF
• Data import formats:
  • CSV
  • ODF

Data-in-transit protection

• Data protection between buyer and supplier networks: TLS (version 1.2 or above)
• Data protection within supplier network: TLS (version 1.2 or above)

Availability and resilience

• Guaranteed availability: Aptem endeavours to make the software available a minimum of 99.7% on average per calendar quarter ("Minimum Availability"). To calculate the average availability during any calendar quarter, any periods of unavailability caused by scheduled maintenance, defined as being planned maintenance or upgrades, is excluded. ; ; If Aptem doesn't achieve Minimum Availability in a calendar quarter a Service Credit is available on request in respect of the Fees paid in that quarter (“Fees Total”). ; ; Where Minimum Availability isn't achieved, actual availability is deducted from the Minimum Availability as a percentage; the difference is multiplied by the Fees Total. The sum is the amount of the Service Credit. Example and illustration only: if actual availability over a quarter is 87.6% and Fees Total is £10,000, the Service Credit is: (((99.7-87.6)/100)*10000) = £1,210, subject to the following provisions: ; ; Service Credits shall not exceed 30% of the Fees that would otherwise have been due with respect to any quarter. ; ; A Service Credit is only payable if requested by the Customer, the request to be sent via email to servicecredits@aptem.co.uk within 30 days of the end of the relevant quarter. Where so requested, the Service Credit shall be applied to fees payable in the following quarter.
• Approach to resilience: We host at Microsoft Azure and have a second UK Azure facility for failover. Information on Azure resiliency at: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/features/resiliency/
• Outage reporting: Email alerts ; ; Customers can subscribe to the Aptem status page: https://status.aptem.co.uk/, increasing visibility over the system’s performance. Subscribers will be notified should there be any interruptions in service. The status page also includes operational status updates for third party integrations, such as BKSB. ; ; We pride ourselves on working in partnership with our customers, and part of that approach is to offer as much transparency as we can around service availability and performance for Aptem products.

Identity and authentication

• User authentication needed: Yes
• User authentication:
  • Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
  • Identity federation with existing provider (for example Google Apps)
  • Username or password
• Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels: Access restrictions are broadly configurable and can be set according to the customer's requirements (e.g. SSO, MFA/MFV or simply username / password).
• Access restriction testing frequency: At least every 6 months
• Management access authentication:
  • Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
  • Identity federation with existing provider (for example Google Apps)
  • Username or password

Audit information for users

• Access to user activity audit information: Users have access to real-time audit information
• How long user audit data is stored for: At least 12 months
• Access to supplier activity audit information: Users have access to real-time audit information
• How long supplier audit data is stored for: At least 12 months
• How long system logs are stored for: At least 12 months

Security governance

• Named board-level person responsible for service security: Yes
• Security governance certified: Yes
• Security governance standards: ISO/IEC 27001
• Information security policies and processes: We have ISO 27001. Our COO attends board and has responsibility for ensuring that our policies and processes are followed.
• Software Security Code of Practice: No

Operational security

• Configuration and change management standard: Supplier-defined controls
• Configuration and change management approach: We use JIRA to record change control approval procedures and prioritisation. This follows the request through to either rejection or implementation. All requests are assessed from a desirability and risk standpoint and prioritised or rejected accordingly. The process involves technical staff including our CPO. ; ; Changes to the physical environment are made through the TPM who can authorise routine access or minor required network settings changes. For security or contractual changes, the TPM consults with the Director of Technology who may also contact the CEO. All changes are detailed in the production environment log, audited monthly by the Director of Technology.
• Vulnerability management type: Complies with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v4.0 or SSAE-18 / ISAE 3402
• Vulnerability management approach: Threat assessment and vulnerability management are inherent in the Microsoft Azure environment. This conforms to CSA CCM v4.0. As we are exclusively a Microsoft environment we accept all Microsoft patch recommendations. ; ; We subscribe to third party threat notification services.
• Protective monitoring type: Complies with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v4.0 or SSAE-18 / ISAE 3402
• Protective monitoring approach: Log, threat and vulnerability management are all provided by Microsoft Azure and this is maintained to CSA CCM v4.0.
• Incident management type: Supplier-defined controls
• Incident management approach: Incidents are managed in accordance with the Aptem Incident Management Policy. Reported incidents are assessed and dealt with by Senior Management and the Aptem infosec group. ; ; Aptem staff receive regular incident management training and are required to report incidents to Senior Management and the Aptem infosec group. Incidents are logged in a central Security Events Log and actions designed to prevent reoccurrence tracked and managed as part of the Aptem IMS Continuous Improvement Log.
• Post-quantum cryptography secure: No

Secure development

• Approach to secure software development best practice: Independent review of processes (for example CESG CPA Build Standard, ISO/IEC 27034, ISO/IEC 27001 or CSA CCM v4.0)

Public sector networks

• Connection to public sector networks: No

Pricing

• Discount for educational organisations: No
• Free trial available: No

Discount percentage by annual call-off contract value (excluding VAT)

• Less than £250,000: 0%
• Between £250,000 and £500,000: 5%
• Between £500,001 and £1,000,000: 10%
• Between £1,000,001 and £2,500,000: 10%
• Between £2,500,001 and £5,000,000: 10%
• Over £5,000,001: 10%

Non-mandatory Standards and certifications

• ISO/IEC 27001 certification: Yes
• Who accredited the ISO/IEC 27001: SOCOTEC
• ISO/IEC 27001 accreditation date: Thursday 30 January 2025
• What the ISO/IEC 27001 doesn’t cover: N/A
• ISO 28000:2022 certification: No
• ISO 9001 certification: Yes
• Who accredited the ISO 9001 certification: SOCOTEC
• ISO 9001 accreditation date: Monday 24 April 2023
• What the ISO 9001 doesn’t cover: N/A
• Quality management systems (QMS): Yes
• CSA STAR certification: Yes
• CSA STAR accreditation date: Wednesday 15 May 2024
• CSA STAR certification level: Level 2: CSA STAR Attestation
• What the CSA STAR doesn’t cover: N/A
• PCI certification: No
• Cyber essentials: Yes
• Please provide your Cyber Essentials Certificate Number: 0F7ADD87-3AC3-479C-ABB8-22A3BDBF25EA
• Cyber essentials plus: Yes
• Please provide your Cyber Essentials Plus Certificate Number: 40479063-97de-450f-9df8-a64948bec12f
• Other security certifications: No

Social value

• Section B - Commitment for Future: Delivery:

  • Mission: Kick start economic growth. To secure the highest sustained growth in the G7 - with good jobs and productivity growth in every part of the country making everyone, not just a few, better off.

    Policy Outcome 2: Skills for growth: Supporting growth sectors and addressing skills gaps.

    • Understanding of employment and relevant skills issues, and of the education and training issues relating to the contract. Illustrative examples: demographics, skills shortages, new opportunities in high growth sectors, geographic/local community and skills/employment challenges
    • Support for educational attainment relevant to the contract, including training schemes that address skills gaps and result in recognised qualifications

Service documents

• Pricing document

  PDF

• Service definition document

  PDF

• Terms and conditions

  PDF

Request an accessible format

If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at enquiries@aptem.co.uk. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.